My Cup of Tea
by Metal Flowers
Summary: It was a terrible idea. Max, who has had to deal with unwanted, terrible family for years, knew that it was a terrible idea to go to the teahouse, but her friends convinced her. Fang, who has to deal with new, horrible changes, knew that it was a terrible idea to work at the teahouse, but he had no choice. A chance meeting between two unlucky people could save lives. All Human
1. Chapter 1

"This is a terrible idea," I said to no one in particular as I stared at the building in front of us. The building came straight from a history book, one focusing on the Victorian Era. That must say something for what the house contained.

A week ago, my best friend -Ella Martinez- sprung the idea of 'having tea at a real tea house' on us. Nudge loved the idea, and showed her ecstasy by literally jumping for joy. Me, not so much, but it was Ella's birthday, so I agreed. What had I gotten myself in to?

"It's not that terrible," Ella said as she tried to peek into the gift bag that I held, containing her present, "I used to go here all the time when I was little. It made me feel special, like a real princess."

How could I still resist after that little confession? Ella, though a hopeless romantic, had terribly low self-esteem issues. Anything that made her feel special was a good idea.

"ZOMG, this is going to be amazing," Nudge clapped her hands together, her gift bag waving around wildly, following her movement, "You're going to love my present because that's amazing, too. I've never been in a tea house before. ZOMG, remember when we had those tea parties when we were little? We all dressed up, even Maya and Max!"

There was silence when Nudge realized her mistake and Ella waited with baited breath, waiting for my reaction. We never brought her up, not anymore. Not after what happened. Thankfully, no strange emotion bubbled up in me, be it anger, sadness, or loss.

"Only because you threatened to never be my friend again," I laughed lightly as I remembered. Nudge had supplied the root beer that we pretended was tea, and Ella had supplied the dress up clothes. For some reason, I was always dressed up as the tooth fairy. I recall rather liking the wings that came with the dress.

Ella giggled, "As if that would happen. Now come on! The longer we stand here, the longer I'm kept separate from my presents!"

As another round of laughter sounded, I pushed the heavy, wooden door to the tea house open. We were immediately assaulted with a mix of calming scents. Some of the scents were floral, but others smelled like sweet smoke, and another smelled like a faint citrus. Huh. I didn't know that tea could smell so appetizing.

As the door closed behind us, I could see what Ella was talking about. This was a really nice place, appealing to the senses. The tables were decorated in white tablecloths with a light pink trim, matching tea sets were set about at each table, and everything radiated a welcoming atmosphere. I inhaled deeply to smell the tea again, and smiled in satisfaction. Forget about the appetizing desserts and sandwiches on display; you could fill your stomach on the scents alone. The low murmurs surrounding us were just loud enough to encourage conversation, but soft enough to make you feel like you're in your own little world.

This place was perfect.

Just, wow.

"Three people?" a boy my age asked us, and we all whirled around to meet his eyes. The boy had chestnut brown hair, eyes the color of the Caribbean ocean, and skin that looked like he spend half the year at the beach. Even in the black and white waiter garb, he looked like a handsome prince.

So not my type.

Apparently, I was the only one who thought so. Ella giggled like a dimwit as she stared at him, and Nudge went silent in awe. I guess it was up to me to get out table.

"Yes, please," I nodded and, though he looked confused about why I didn't fall to his feet to worship him, he led us to our table. It was a table right beside a window, where the bright sunlight shone through.

"Dylan?" Ella burst out, still standing beside him even after Nudge and I had sat down. She was starting to seem like a stalker, actually seeming like she knew the poor guy.

"I'm sorry, do we go to the same school?" the boy asked, looking even more confused. Strange, so that was actually his name? It fit him. A prince like name for a prince like boy. Prince Dylan.

"When I was little, I came here all the time. We used to play in the back room," Ella deflated the tiniest bit once she realized that this 'Dylan' character didn't recognize him.

Or maybe he did. His exotic blue eyes widened with recollection, "Princess Ella?"

Somehow, I can imagine Ella prancing around with a strange little boy, playing princess. It was just...her.

"Ruler of the Tea Kingdom," Ella giggled again, and Dylan blushed.

"You certainly look like a princess now," he smiled, showing a mouth full of shiny teeth, "So what brings you here?"

Nudge and I looked at each other awkwardly, yet happy that Ella found a really, really hot guy that might like her back. I just wished that they had found each other when Nudge and I weren't waiting in the background, hearing everything.

"It's my birthday," Ella smiled widely, "I'm fifteen today, so that would make you...sixteen?"

"Just about," he smiled, though it looked kind of stiff, "Sorry that I didn't know about your birthday. I should've gotten you a present."

"Don't worry about it," she said, completely different from her normal present greedy self, "You still can."

"Um, okay? What should I get you?" his smile was unsteady. Nudge and I again met each other's gazes, amused now. We knew exactly where Ella was going with this.

"Just your phone number," Ella smiled slyly, twirling her thick black hair around her finger. She was going overboard with the flirt, if you ask me, but Nudge seemed to want more. This was like a soap opera.

I expected Dylan to say something like 'No prob, I can handle that' but he didn't. There was a conflict going on in his eyes, like he wanted to and didn't want to at the same time.

"Hey, douche. This is my section," a smooth voice said from behind me. Dylan lowered his head and nodded, slinking away.

"Bye, Ella and company. I really hope we bump into each other again," he grumbled as he went to assist a young couple.

"Sorry about that," the boy cleared his throat in embarrassment, "My name is Fang and I'll be your waiter today. What type of tea would you like?"

The boy had shaggy, shiny black hair that hung over his gray...no, _obsidian_ eyes, and olive skin. I was so entranced that it took me a few seconds before I realized that he was waiting for my order. Did he think that I was the one making the decisions today?

"We'll have the Earl Grey Tea," Ella said, embarrassed by getting turned down. Fang wrote down the order hastily on a pad of paper he held in his hand.

"Anything else?" he asked, looking at me once again.

"I want a cookie," I said before I could stop myself, "A chocolate chip cookie."

Ugh, I sounded like such a child with the 'I wanna cookie!' thing. Fang smiled in amusement.

"A cookie it is," I think I heard a small snicker, "And you two?"

"I'll have a slice of apple pie," Nudge said hungrily, eyeing a particularly appetizing piece of dessert being displayed.

Ella looked in the menu for a few seconds before finding what she wanted, "I can't believe they still have it! I'll have a Holiday Spice Cupcake with Chai frosting."

"You're order will be up shortly," Fang told us, looking at me discreetly once more before heading to the kitchen part of the restaurant.

"They're so hot," Nudge said dreamily, sighing dramatically.

"Dylan definitely liked Ella," I agreed, slightly jealous that she managed to snag his attention. Of course, it wasn't _that_ waiter's attention I wanted to have.

"Fang was totes checking Max out," Ella turned the attention away from herself. Nudge, having seen my blush, started to launch into a pushy tirade on how I should try to 'flirt' and 'look girly'. I hastily excused myself.

"I have to go to the bathroom."

When a girl has to go to the bathroom, you don't stop her. It's just a rule. Nudge pursed her lips at me in dissatisfaction, but shifted the conversation to focus on Ella as I left.

I happened to pass by the kitchen on my way to the bathroom, where I overheard a hushed argument.

"-fifteen today, you sicko!" Fang hissed. I peeked into the kitchen to see Fang, hovering over Dylan threateningly, "You have a girlfriend!"

"Ella and I were friends," Dylan insisted, "I just want to be friends again."

"You and I both know that you're not looking for friendship with that child," Fang growled, pushing Dylan. The chestnut haired boy staggered back, but didn't retaliate.

"But I have a girlfriend," Dylan said angrily, "I'm not looking for another. Star and I are happy together."

"Star doesn't love you. Get that through your thick head so you stop hurting the people who care about you," Fang warned him once more before pushing past him, "Iggy! Those orders done, yet?"

I hurried back to our table, not wanting to be caught eavesdropping. Ella and Nudge looked at me expectantly, wanting me to confess to my 'crush'.

"Dylan has a GF, but likes Ella." I shared as I sat down, "He doesn't want to cheat, but thinks that he'll be tempted if he hangs out with her. Apparently, his GF sucks, but the poor boy's in deep."

"Makes sense," Nudge nodded and Ella relaxed in relief. Good, I lightened the mood. I didn't want Ella obsessing over the rejection all day, so this had to be done.

Fang came waltzing back in, this time with a teapot and tray of food in his grip. I snorted at the picture. Fang and a teapot didn't mix. At all. Fang gave me a dark look before pouring the tea into our teapots and setting the teapot down.

Next, he sat down the desserts, which we dug into immediately.

"This is so good!" Nudge said, her mouth full of apples and crust.

Fang chuckled, "Make sure to give your compliments to the chef. Oh, and...someone wanted me to give you this, as well."

He handed Ella a slip of paper with a hastily written phone number written on it. Dylan.

Fang then bent down and whispered in my ear, "I know that you overheard. Thanks for being there, or I might have killed the guy."

"You're welcome?" I said, the nicety ending up sounding like a question. Fang rolled his obsidian eyes.

"Don't worry. I'll kill him if he breaks any more hearts," he stopped, then corrected himself, "Except for Star. Dylan's in my care, so I have to look after him and fix his mistakes. Really, thanks for stopping me from killing him."

With that, he left. No one had heard our exchange, too absorbed in the dessert. I took a sip of tea and found that I liked it. It tasted of citrus and smelled like fruit loops.

When Fang had leaned in so close that his breath tickled my ear, he smelled like this tea. I wondered why a boy as mysterious as him was working in a tea shop.

"Oh my god," Ella gasped as she happened to glance out the window. I wondered what she saw. A cat? A child? As I looked out as well, I found that it was much worse.

Outside, a dark blue car was parked and the girl inside it waved. The girl was a mirror image of me, with light brown hair, dark brown eyes, and slightly tanned skin.

Inside the car was the girl I hadn't spoken of in months.

The girl I hadn't spoken to in years.

My twin sister, Maya.


	2. Chapter 2

As I left the hospital, I furiously wiped the tears from my eyes. I didn't like showing emotion, even if it was for her. I couldn't even think her name right now, I was too upset.

It was fall right now, but it was already freezing. I wrapped my thin, black jacket tighter around me, trying to focus on anything but her.

My job. That was something that could distract me.

To pay for her medical bills, Mom and Dad had to lay off everyone who worked at the tea house. That meant, of course, that my brothers and I had to fill in for our missing employees. Tea houses definitely weren't my thing, but I had no choice. None of us had a choice.

She had looked at me with such gentle, trusting blue eyes, "I love you, Fang."

My brothers were distracting, too. I would never find something as distracting as my brothers. Nothing was more interesting than some adopted kids, right?

Iggy was my favorite brother, by far. He made a joke of everything, needed glasses so thick that we considered him blind, and could cook like a professional chef. He had strawberry blond hair, pale skin, freckles, and light blue eyes. Iggy was the exact opposite of me, in personality as well as looks.

Dylan was the only one of my brothers that isn't adopted. He's our parents favorite, is a complete ass, and frikkin loves this girl whose only into him for his looks. He always drops everything for this girl, Star. He doesn't make trips to the hospital. He doesn't hang out with us. He doesn't ever shut up about Star. Star's a stupid name, but of course, a person named Fang can't say anything like that.

I barged into the back of the tea house, a place I've practically lived in for years. I angrily punched the wall of the kitchen, trying to vent my anger. I won't punch Dylan. That would make her disappointed in me.

"You're better than your friends," she'd informed me, her eyes much too wise for someone her age, "Don't solve your problems with your fists."

Well, I'm sorry. Not all of us can read minds. That was a personal joke between us. It was just that she was so in tune with everyone else that she seemed to read minds.

"How is Angel?" Iggy asked, pulling out an apple pie from the oven. Iggy always visited her in the afternoon.

"Same as ever. Better. Worse," I snapped as I took off my coat, revealing my waiter clothes underneath. It was a simple dress shirt and black jeans, but my parents let me get away with it.

"Go take people's orders," Iggy instructed me. I know, I know. The better I did, the more people would come back. The more people came back, the more money we would have. The more money we had, the better Angel was.

Angel, my sick, little sister.

Angel, who was suffering from Stage Three heart cancer, the rarest form of cancer.

I should have known something was wrong with her. Those coughing fits, fevers, and rashes should've warned me for this.

With a scowl etched on my face, I went out to greet our customers. Now I'd have to see Dylan's face, which wouldn't put me in a good mood.

Right when I exited the kitchen, equipped with a pen and small pad of paper, I saw that Dylan was monopolizing one of my tables. He was chatting with a group of girls, looking full of himself.

I knew two of these girls, I realized. The Hispanic girl with the long black hair volunteered at the hospital sometimes, bringing a trained dog in with her to cheer the children up. She never noticed me hanging I'n the background, watching her and Angel as they both laughed and smiled.

The second girl I barely knew. The last time I saw her was a few years ago, but she was one of those people that are impossible to forget. I only saw her a few times. My adoptive aunt was sick and our parents were visiting her. My aunt didn't like me very much, so I always just sat in the waiting room, observing people. There were always sad people, noisy little kids, and happy people who were probably visiting a pregnant lady. Then, there was this girl. She always sat in the corner of the room, next to the potted plant. From time to time, a gray haired man or blond haired woman would sit next to her and whisper soothing assurances in her ear, but most of the time, she was alone. Once, when she thought no one was looking, one miniscule, crystalline tear had slipped down her face. I had forgotten about her completely until now.

"Sorry I didn't get you anything for your birthday," Dylan smiled apologetically. I stopped for just a second. Dylan was saying sorry? He was actually acting like a human being?

This girl, could she be Ella? When I wasn't hearing about Star, I was hearing about Ella. She's all over his diary -ahem, journal- too. Dylan's positively whipped by this girl, even though she's two years younger than her. She's fifteen, and he's seventeen. Dylan's basically a pedophile now.

Disgusting.

Ella asked for his phone number, and I realized that Dylan was actually going to do that. Even though he had a girlfriend and this new girl was two years younger than him, he was going to give his phone number away. Unbelievable!

"Hey douche," I appeared beside him. Even though I was still only fifteen, I had a good three inches on him, "This is my section."

Even though I was incredibly irritated by Dylan, I couldn't help staring at the girl. She had chocolate brown eyes, light brown hair that shone in the light and didn't look damaged in any way, and that bravery that I'd seen once before was still there.

I realized that she'd caught me staring. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she saw me checking her out.

Oops.

"Bye, Ella and company. I hope that we see each other again," Dylan pouted before attending to his side of the room.

Huh. I had to think. Which was better? My brother basically being a pedophile or him seeing Star?

Obviously, there was no hesitation in my answer. The more Dylan hung out with Ella, the more he'd be at the hospital. The more he'd be at the hospital, the more he'd visit Angel.

Angel would be happy.

"Sorry about that," I cleared my throat, noticing that I had just cursed in front of customers, "My name is Fang and I'll be your server today. What kind of tea would you like to start out with?"

The girl stared at me and I grimaced. She was probably wondering why I'd looked like such a stalker a few minutes earlier, just staring at her.

"We'll have the Earl Grey tea," Ella said briskly, ordering for the whole group. The two others simply went along with it, and I automatically knew that Ella's friends knew nothing about tea. At all.

Oh well, no one's perfect.

"Anything else?" I asked, my eyes running over the group and immediately settling on that one girl again.

"A cookie," the girl said on impulse, "A chocolate chip cookie."

I snickered. Back at the foster home, this one girl –Jennifer Joy- would always ask for a cookie, just like that. Strange, I hadn't thought back this far in awhile. There's something about old acquaintances that just puts you in a nostalgic mood.

"A cookie it is," I said to the girl, giving her a comforting smile to make up for my snicker. It was a fake smile, of course, but I did want them to come back, didn't I? Angel needed it. "And you two?"

The dark skinned girl (who I had barely noticed since she was a stranger to me) ordered an apple pie and Ella made a big fuss about the pumpkin cupcake. We didn't _still_ have it, I wanted to correct her, We just put it back on the menu a week ago.

I nodded to them and told them that their food would be right out, before returning to the kitchen. Dylan was already there (skipping out on work) and talking to Iggy, who was now washing dishes.

"…but she's _that girl_, and I just don't know what to do!" Dylan complained, banging his head against the tiled wall, "I can't just let her skip out of my life again, but I can't spend less time with Star!"

I disagreed with one of those statements. Care to guess which?

"Like hell you can't spend less time with Star!" I snarled as I stepped inside the kitchen, "You don't even have time to visit Angel."

"How is she, anyway?" Dylan asked, whirling around. Oh no, if he can't go to the hospital, he doesn't get to know. Dylan isn't getting off that easy.

"Like you care," Iggy grumbled as he dropped a plate back into the sink, "Oh, shit. Fang? Can you pour the tea? It's Earl Grey in there."

Well, at least one thing has been convenient today. I poured the tea into dainty little tea pitcher-thingies. Mom and Dad had tried to teach me the names of these things, but I had given up before even starting.

"Well Fang, what do you think I should do?" Dylan asked me, looking at me with puppy dog eyes. He never seemed to get it through his thick skull that I was pissed at him.

"That girl is a _child_," I hissed. Still, Ella was a volunteer. Dylan hangs with her, he visits Angel. Angel would like that. I had to do this carefully, "She's fifteen today, sicko! You have a girlfriend!"

"Ella and I were friends, "Dylan insisted weakly, "I just want to be friends again."

Seriously, I would kill this blind idiot if we weren't brothers.

It was then that I noticed that we had an eavesdropper. It was that girl, the one with the light brown hair.

Well, with her here I won't commit anymore murders.

"You and I both know that you're not looking for friendship with that child."

"But I have a girlfriend and I'm not looking for another. Star and I are happy together."

"Star doesn't love you. Get that through your thick head so you stop hurting those you care about," I turned away to face Iggy, "Iggy, those orders done yet?"

All a play for the girl, of course. I couldn't have her actually know what's going on.

"What orders?" Iggy grumbled, "All the food we sell is at the counter."

Flashed him a grin as I took up the teapot and loaded up a tray with the selected deserts.

I handed Dylan's phone number to that Ella chick. Won't brother be surprised?

"I know that you overheard. Thanks for being there, or I might've killed the guy," I whispered to the girl. I really needed to learn her name, but I couldn't think of a way to ask. I was the waiter, she was the customer.

"You're welcome?" she said, her statement sounding like a question.

"Don't worry, I'll kill him if he breaks any more hearts." Except for Star, I thought darkly, "Dylan's in my care, so I have to look after him and fix his mistakes. Really, thanks for stopping me from killing him."


End file.
